# Page 18

Mr. Lay gazed into the folder before rising from his chair. His mind was still tangled in the mystery of Anna Raynott, but the unexpected arrival of the officer sent a fresh ripple of unease through him. He stepped toward the door just as a tall, sharp-eyed man entered the room.

"Mr. Lay," Officer River said with a curt nod. He was dressed in a dark coat, his expression unreadable. "Apologies for the sudden visit, but I believe we have something you’ll want to see."

David stood as well, his pulse quickening. "Is it about Amelia?"

River hesitated, then placed a sealed evidence bag on the table. Inside was a worn leather notebook, its pages yellowed with age.

“We found this in the rubbish bin outside of Julian’s house,” he said.

Mr. Lay’s breath caught as he stared at the notebook. Through the plastic, he could see frantic scribbles filling the pages, some underlined, others crossed out in frustration.

David reached for it, but Officer River held up a hand. “Careful. We haven’t fully processed it yet, but you’ll want to see this.”

He flipped the notebook open to a marked page and turned it so they could read.

*"Amelia will be gone. She is going to vanish without a trace. All because she knew something — she must have. "*&#x20;

David swallowed hard. “Julian wrote this?”

The police officer nodded grimly. “Most likely, and it gets worse.”

He turned a few more pages, stopping at a passage with deep indentations, as if Julian had pressed his pen too hard in panic.

*"I’m sorry, Amelia. I never should have involved you. I just wanted you to know the truth. But now… I’m on their list too."*

“It says May 5th there, so two days before Amelia’s disappearance.” said Mrs. Lay.

The room felt colder as the words settled between them.

Mr. Lay’s jaw tightened. “So Julian knew Amelia before? And he knew what's going to happen to her?”
